Thuja plant named ‘Thucavlo’

ABSTRACT

A new cultivar of Thuja occidentalis plant named ‘Thucavlo’ that is characterized by its dense foliage, its dwarf growth habit, and its upright and globular growth habit with a broadly acute apex.

Botanical classification: Thuja occidentalis.

Varietal denomination: ‘Thucavlo’.

CROSS REFERENCE TO A RELATED APPLICATION

This application is related to a European plant breeders' rightsapplication filed on Jan. 1, 2018, application No. 2018/0001. There havebeen no offers for sale anywhere in the world prior to the effectivefiling date of this Application and no accessibility to one of ordinaryskill in the art could have been derived from the printed plantbreeder's rights documents.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Thujaoccidentalis and will be referred to hereafter by its cultivar name,‘Thucavlo’. ‘Thucavlo’ represents a new western cedar, an evergreen treegrown for landscape use.

The inventor discovered ‘Thucavlo’ as a naturally occurring branchmutation of ‘Smaragd’ (not patented) in December 2012 that was growingin a production field in Aldergrove, British Columbia, Canada.

Asexual propagation of the new cultivar was first accomplished by theInventor using stem cuttings in November 2013 in Aldergrove, BritishColumbia, Canada. Asexual propagation by stem cuttings has determinedthat the characteristics of this cultivar are stable and reproduced trueto type in successive generations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and represent thecharacteristics of the new cultivar. These attributes in combinationdistinguish ‘Thucavlo’ as a unique cultivar of Thuja.

-   -   1. ‘Thucavlo’ exhibits dense foliage.    -   2. ‘Thucavlo’ exhibits a dwarf growth habit.    -   3. ‘Thucavlo’ exhibits an upright and semi-globular growth habit        with a broadly acute apex.

The parent plant of ‘Thucavlo’, ‘Smaragd’, differs from ‘Thucavlo’ inhaving a less dwarf growth habit, less dense foliage (more open), andless globular shape with a more pointed apex. ‘Thucavlo’ can be mostclosely compared to the Thuja plicata cultivars ‘Danica’ (not patented)and ‘Bail John’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 15,850). ‘Danica’ is similar to‘Thucavlo’ in foliage color but differs from ‘Thucavlo’ in having a lessupright and more globular plant habit. ‘Bail John’ is similar to‘Thucavlo’ in having dense foliage and a dwarf growth habit, but differsfrom ‘Thucavlo’ in having a more pyramidal plant habit.

STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES BY THE INVENTOR

The Applicant asserts that no publications or advertisements relating tosales, offers for sale, or public distribution occurred more than oneyear prior to the effective filing date of this application. Anyinformation about the claimed plant less than one year prior to theeffective filing date would have been obtained from a direct or indirectdisclosure from the Inventor under 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(1). Website listingswith information from direct or indirect disclosure by the Inventorinclude but are not limited to listings by plantipp, concept plants, anda listing entitled neuheitenschaufenster 2020 (and other relatedpublished references to the new plant showcase at IPM conference).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying colored photographs illustrate the overall appearanceand distinct characteristics of the new Thuja. The photographs weretaken of a three-year-old plant as grown outdoors in a 21-cm containerin Ederveen, The Netherlands.

FIG. 1 provides an overall view of the plant habit of ‘Thucavlo’.

FIG. 2 provides a close-up view of the foliage of ‘Thucavlo’.

The colors in the photographs are as close as possible with thephotographic and printing technology utilized and the color values citedin the detailed botanical description accurately describe the colors ofthe new Thuja.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The following is a detailed description of the new cultivar as takenfrom three-year-old plant as grown outdoors in a 20-cm circularcontainer in Ederveen, The Netherlands. The phenotype of the newcultivar may vary with variations in environmental, climatic, andcultural conditions, as it has not been tested under all possibleenvironmental conditions. The color determination is in accordance withThe 2015 Colour Chart of The Royal Horticultural Society, London,England, except where general color terms of ordinary dictionarysignificance are used.

-   General description:    -   -   Plant type.—Coniferous, evergreen tree.        -   Plant habit.—Upright and semi-globular with a broadly acute            apex.        -   Plant size.—An average of 64.8 cm in height and 27.1 cm in            width as grown in a 20-cm container and reaches 1.5 to 1.75            m in height and 40 to 50 cm in spread as a mature plant in            the landscape.        -   Hardiness.—At least in U.S.D.A. Zones 3 to 11.        -   Diseases and pests.—No susceptibility or resistance to            diseases or pests has been observed.        -   Root description.—Fibrous, moderately thick.        -   Propagation.—Stem cuttings.        -   Growth rate.—Moderately vigorous.        -   Root development.—A rooted cutting is produced in 8 to 10            weeks, a young plant is produced in about 5 months from a            rooted cutting.-   Branch description:    -   -   Branch quantity.—Average of 7 main branches and 75 lateral            branches.        -   Branch shape.—Rounded.        -   Branch aspect.—Average of 85° from vertical.        -   Branch size.—Lateral branch average of 30.7 cm in length and            4 mm in diameter.        -   Branch surface.—Densely covered with scale-like leaves that            are very slightly glossy.        -   Branching.—Densely, freely branching.        -   Branch arrangement.—Alternate.        -   Branch strength.—Strong.        -   Internode length.—Average of 1.4 cm.        -   Branch color.—Young branches; between 144A and N144A, mature            stems; 164A and N199D, older bark; 176A and 200B to 200C.-   Foliage description:    -   -   Leaf arrangement.—Opposite.        -   Leaf attachment.—Sessile.        -   Leaf shape.—Oblong, folded.        -   Leaf division.—Simple.        -   Leaf base.—Decurrent.        -   Leaf aspect.—Average of 30° to lateral branch.        -   Leaf apex.—Apiculate.        -   Leaf venation.—Not distinguishable, coloration matches leaf            coloration.        -   Leaf margins.—Entire.        -   Leaf fragrance.—Slight evergreen fragrance when crushed.        -   Leaf surface.—Upper and lower surfaces; matte, non-rugose.        -   Leaf color.—Mature upper surface N144A, lower surface 143B.        -   Leaf size.—Average of 3.5 mm in length, 1.5 mm in width.        -   Leaf quantity.—Average of 8,000 scale-like leaves per            lateral branch.-   Cone description: Neither male nor female cones have been observed    to date.

It is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Thuja plant named‘Thucavlo’ as herein illustrated and described.